Welcome to the Asian, African, and Middle Eastern Section

AAMES represents librarians and specialists in the fields of Asian, African, and Middle Eastern area studies and acts for the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL), in cooperation with other professional groups, in those areas of library service that require knowledge of Asian, African and Middle Eastern languages and cultures.

The Asian and African section was created in 1969. Its initial name was the "Asian and North African Subsection" of the Subject Specialists Section of ACRL. By 1980, the name had been changed to "Asian and African" and the group was a full section of ACRL. In 1993, the phrase "Middle East" was added to the section title in recognition of a long-standing practice of inclusion.

With the increasing popularity of gobal/area/international studies, area studies librarianship is an exciting career to pursue. Come, join us! We promise that you will have the opportunity to work with one of the most diverse ACRL sections.

AAMES Website

New Members

AAMES would like to thank and welcome our new members who have recently joined the section! Please consider volunteering for our committees. It is a great opportunity to meet and network with colleagues in your field. If interested, please contact Triveni Kuchi, the Chair of AAMES via e-mail (kuchi<at>rci.rutgers.edu).

2011 ALA Annual Program (New Orleans)

Title:Asian African and Middle Eastern Librarianship in 21st Century: Effective Models in an Age of Globalization

Listserv

AAMES has created this list to facilitate and encourage discussion of important issues amongst Section members and non-members across the spectrum of the area studies librarian's groups represented: Association for Asian Studies (AAS), African Studies Association (ASA), and the Middle East Studies Association (MESA).

For the Section, it is a vehicle to keep members abreast of current activities, receive member input, distribute agendas for upcoming conference meetings and the minutes thereafter, circulate an annual list of current officers and committee members, announce additions to the website, and opportunities to volunteer within the Section. It is also a medium by which the voices of members and non-members can be heard within ACRL and ALA to effect the work of the parent organizations in relation to area studies and international relations.

More broadly, it is a forum to: disseminate information about new and innovative projects by our sister librarian organizations, discuss new technologies & their implications for area studies librarianship, Library of Congress Overseas Operations, Center for Research Libraries operations, funding opportunities, and other issues of concern to the area studies community. Postings of our sister librarian organizations' meeting minutes foster knowledge of projects with potentially broader applications and stimulates the other groups.

SUBSCRIBE by sending an email to LISTPROC@ALA1.ALA.ORG with the single line: "SUBSCRIBE AAMES-L JOAN S. DOE".

Volunteering for AAMES

Would you like to get involved in AAMES? Complete the ACRL volunteer form. Please be patient as the form takes some time to download.